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02-05-2009, 10:45 AM
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#1
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: minnesota
Posts: 13,228
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Countdown to Darwin Day
Darwin Day Celebration
February 12 is Darwin Day, a day of celebration of science and reason. My kind of holiday!
Wisconsin public radio has been playing a number of good programs on evolutionary science. Very enjoyable. I learned that Tibetans that have lived for 4-5000 years up high have evolved a different blood chemistry to account for the lack of oxygen, and children born without that chemistry are far less likely to survive.
Learn something new for Darwin Day and post it here.
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No more lawyer stuff, no more political stuff, so no more CYA
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02-05-2009, 10:51 AM
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#2
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 6,506
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Martha
Darwin Day Celebration
February 12 is Darwin Day, a day of celebration of science and reason.
Learn something new for Darwin Day and post it here.
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I did not know about Darwin Day. Jeez, now I have homework to do.
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There must be moderation in everything, including moderation.
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02-05-2009, 11:14 AM
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#3
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 7,746
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Evolutionary biology is quite an amazing thing. If you have never heard or read much about it and like reading non-fiction, check it out sometime.
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02-05-2009, 11:35 AM
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#4
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 401
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FUEGO
Evolutionary biology is quite an amazing thing. If you have never heard or read much about it and like reading non-fiction, check it out sometime.
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Here's one of the more interesting things I've read recently:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/10/sc...nd-evolve.html
... about the very recent development of lactose tolerance (ability
to digest milk). Apparently it's one of the most recent evolutionary
changes (about 3000 years ago).
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02-05-2009, 11:46 AM
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#5
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 8,827
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People with sickle cell disease have a lower mortality rate from malaria.
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Rich
San Francisco Area
ESR'd March 2010. FIRE'd January 2011.
As if you didn't know..If the above message contains medical content, it's NOT intended as advice, and may not be accurate, applicable or sufficient. Don't rely on it for any purpose. Consult your own doctor for all medical advice.
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02-05-2009, 11:50 AM
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#6
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 7,746
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RustyShackleford
... about the very recent development of lactose tolerance (ability
to digest milk). Apparently it's one of the most recent evolutionary
changes (about 3000 years ago).
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I believe southeast Asians, who were not accustomed to consuming animal milk, suffer from high rates of lactose intolerance. My children, who are 50% SE Asian, seem to have acquired my lactose tolerance given their love for cheese, ice cream and milk.
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02-05-2009, 11:58 AM
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#7
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 7,746
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa
People with sickle cell disease have a lower mortality rate from malaria.
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Interesting - I never knew there was a potential evolutionary advantage to sickle cell. My SE Asian wife has a relatively rare (in the standard US of A gene pool) hemoglobin E mutation that always scares the docs into thinking she has sickle cell. Then they researched it and found it is fairly common in some SE Asian populations and only results in slight anemia that usually isn't a problem. But malaria is a big problem in parts of SE Asia. So sickle cell or hemoglobin E would tend to offer protection or at least amelioration from malaria? I guess that explains higher rates of sickle cell among africans too.
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02-05-2009, 05:28 PM
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#8
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Gone but not forgotten
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 6,924
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For those on facebook:
Login | Facebook
Can we find 200,000 by Feb 12 to wish Darwin a happy 200th birthday?
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"Knowin' no one nowhere's gonna miss us when we're gone..."
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02-07-2009, 07:00 AM
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#10
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Pocono Mtns.
Posts: 899
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It's about time we started a "celebration of science and reason". I'm delighted!
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02-07-2009, 01:11 PM
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#11
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,502
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I'll strap on a rocket assisted take off to celebrate the day!
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02-07-2009, 02:03 PM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: North Oregon Coast
Posts: 16,483
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Wow. I never realized that Darwin and Abe Lincoln were born on the same day...
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"Hey, for every ten dollars, that's another hour that I have to be in the work place. That's an hour of my life. And my life is a very finite thing. I have only 'x' number of hours left before I'm dead. So how do I want to use these hours of my life? Do I want to use them just spending it on more crap and more stuff, or do I want to start getting a handle on it and using my life more intelligently?" -- Joe Dominguez (1938 - 1997)
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